Among the Living | Completed

Chapter Sixty-Five: Home at Last

***Edited version #1***

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Dellan woke after some indeterminate time in the wee hours of the morning, surprised to find himself still unclothed.  He felt himself shiver and figured the cold was what had woken him.  Ida was asleep next to him, and he could just barely hear her soft breathing as she laid there, facing away from him.  She was also mostly naked, wearing only the new bralette and nothing down below.  He fought the urge to reach out and cup her bare bottom, not wanting to rouse her from her slumber.

However, when he moved to pull the covers over his chilled body, he felt her stir.  She turned over to face him, still half asleep, but then woke suddenly and sat up.

"I didn't mean to wake you," he whispered apologetically, wondering what had made her sit up so unexpectedly.

"Oh... no that's not it," she shook her head groggily before mumbling, "I just realized I don't have any underwear on."

Dellan chuckled, "Same here."

Ida also snickered and made a point to playfully peak under the covers at him before he could protest.  "I'm going to go to the bathroom and get dressed.  It got cold in here," she said, shivering in demonstration.

After Ida pulled on a pair of underwear and slipped out of the room with her pajamas in hand, Dellan stood from the bed to also throw on some clothes.  He saw one of his sweaters deposited near Ida's bags and remembered she had been wearing it most of the day before.  Seizing the opportunity to reclaim his belonging, he picked it up and slipped it on over his shirt.  He caught a faint waft of Ida's coconut-scented soap from the knit fabric and finally understood what she had meant by being able to smell someone on their clothes.  It did feel like she was hugging him, in the shape of a sweater.

He stooped to pick up the various discarded items of clothing on the floor to either deposit near their bags or toss into the dirty laundry hamper that had been provided by Maggie.  But he paused just as he was about to throw his jeans into the hamper, remembering he had placed the ring in one of the pockets.  He had intended to give it to her after she opened her other presents but grew too nervous.

Come on, Dellan, he thought to himself as he plucked the piece jewelry out of the pocket.  It's just another gift.

He sat on the edge of the bed, listening to his anxious heart while he waited for Ida to return.  She did not long after and seemed curious when she saw that he was not in bed.

"You didn't have to wait up for me," she said as she approached the bed to sit beside him.

"I, um, have one more birthday present," he spoke, his voice barely above a whisper.

"Huh?  You already gave me so much," she tilted her head to the side as she inspected his face.

"Close your eyes," he whispered.  She complied hesitantly.  

"This better not be a prank," she muttered with a smirk.

"It's not," he assured her. "Hold out your hand."

"Dellan, I swear to god if it is," she warned half-heartedly and furrowed her brows with amused suspicion.  But, she kept her eyes closed as she extended her hand, palm up.

"Don't look until I tell you to," Dellan prefaced and gingerly placed the ring there, noticing how his hand shook as he did.  Ida obeyed, but her curious fingers wrapped around the unknown object in her palm as soon as he deposited it.